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Monday, August 13, 2012

the great american road trip take 4: texas to oklahoma

I am beginning to think, that the secret to a good road trip, is to not listen to anybody else before you go.

If we had listened to all of the advice we'd heard about the best route back from Taos, we would have missed three of our favorite stops: Albuquerque, Cadilac Ranch in Amarillo, TX, and perhaps the biggest surprise of all - Oklahoma City.

We woke up in Amarillo. Our brand-new Comfort Suites hotel had a free breakfast, which included omlettes, sauasage and Texas-shaped waffles. After packing up, gassing up, and a brief stop at Michaels craft store for paint, we were ready to hit Cadilac Ranch. Unfortunately, the late hours, limited wi-fi, and the breakneck pace of our trip with three kids, doesn't allow me to go into the history of the place, but I can tell you this - it was cool.

Grafitti is not only legal at Cadilac Ranch, but enouraged, and there is no escaping the feeling that you are a part of Americana. Punk loved making his mark on all of the cars, Kooka took her time creating a masterpiece, Yoda had a great time painting with her brush. Despite the high winds, and swallowing enough red dirt to qualify as lunch, it was difficult to leave. We knew our artwork wouldn't last, and even if we ever venture this way again, the place would never be the same. Maybe that's why we took over 40 pictures.

Lunch was a McStop in Clover, Texas. It took an extra large tea to wash the grit from our teeth, and a chile' cheeseburger to wash down the tea (they serve them with jalapeños down here). We also stopped at the old-fashioned Clover gas station, just because it was so cool.

We knocked another state off the list when we hit Oklahoma, and much to our surprise, Oklahoma City is so cool, we wish we had more time.

It was a short walk from our hotel to Earl's Rib Palace in Brickown. The ribs were huge, tender, smoked to perfection and accompanied by loaded baked potatoes, sweet tea and grilled corn on the cob. No wonder the food was delectable - according to locals, and the info at the restaurant, Earl was the personal chef to one Mr. Elvis Presley. If we had to pick three of our too restaurants on this trip - this would be one of them.

Our tour of Bricktown continued with a sunset water taxi ride down the canal. Apparently the route used to be a street, and the city decided to dig it up, add water, and viola' - instant tourist attraction. Our captain, Brian shared stories of city history,the land rush, the sooners, and the boat ride was landscaped with gorgeous mosaics, larger than life statues, and plenty of ducks for Yoda to admire. All five of us agreed that it was the best part of the day, and a perfect way to cap off our first night in Oklahoma.

I just have to add - I almost feel guilty for blogging on the road. It seems that my thoughts are so scattered, my writing incoherent, and that all I am managing are the barebones details, so that we don't forget them later. Hopefully whe I get back, I'll have more time, and gett back to my "real" writing.